FOTONIQUE

The National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) has teamed up with property company Kennedy Wilson to develop 4.8 acres at the site on Sir John Rogerson's Quay.

Capital Dock will include 313,000 square feet of office space across three buildings, as well as 204 residential units across two buildings - one of which will incorporate a 19-storey tower. The proposed development would also have a new 1.5 acre landscaped public park and square, designated cultural space and retail units [they all do don’t they?].

It would also see a pedestrian footbridge across the River Liffey (giving direct access to Point Village and the Luas), and a vehicular bridge from Sir John Rogerson's Quay towards Ringsend - with links north through the Port Tunnel to the airport and to the south city. A second footbridge across the Dodder will connect Castleforbes Street and Sir John Rogerson's Quay.

The pedestrian bridges will cost between €10m and €17m each to build. The council may have to borrow to fund building costs and be repaid over time as as levies accrue, but ultimately the bill should be entirely privately funded. The road bridge will be funded by the National Transport Authority - which is ultimately financed by taxpayers. All of the bridges will be built with lifting mechanisms to enable ship traffic into the Grand Canal basin and the Liffey.

The bridges will allow workers to move more freely between the north side and south side, as the redevelopment of the Docklands picks up pace. Dublin City Council and Nama are advancing ambitious plans for the region, with a sprawling business district similar to London's Canary Wharf.

[UPDATE] Construction of a €17 million pedestrian and cycle bridge over the Liffey has been put on hold for at least 15 months because of uncertainty over the Dart Underground. Dublin City Council last year announced plans for the new bridge to connect the old London and North Western Railway Company station on North Wall Quay to Forbes Street on Sir John Rogerson’s Quay on the south of the river.